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Summary

This 3rd edition pres-ents a concise overview of how the war was fought as well as a consideration of the ways in which Americans regarded allies and enemies, embraced heroes, and viewed the war's purpose. Making the important distinction between popu-lar notions and military and political realities, Gary Hess helps today's readers to better understand the complexity of the conflict. Updated to incorporate the latest scholarship, this latest edition also includes new material to underscore more fully the moral dimensions of the war, including the American decision to use the atomic bomb, the ruthless campaigns of both the Germans and Russians in Eastern Europe, American reaction to the Holocaust as well as the government's post-war tolerance and protection of Nazis deemed valuable to Cold War research and intelligence. Enhanced coverage of specific topics including the Bataan Death March, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Allied uncov-ering of concentration camps rounds out the narrative.

Author Biography

Gary R. Hess is an Emeritus Distinguished Research Professor of History at Bowling Green State University. His research and teaching interests focused on U.S. foreign relations from World War II to the present. He is the author of several books, including most recently: Presidential Decisions for War (rev. ed., 2009); and Vietnam: Explaining America’s Lost War (2008). He has been a four-time Fulbright Scholar/Lecturer in India. He is a past president of both the Society for Historians of American Foreign Realtions and the Ohio Academy of History. Both organizations recognized his scholarly and service contributions through their Norman and Laura Graebner Award and Distinguished Historian Award, respectively.

Table of Contents

Preface to the Third Edition ix

Chapter One. To Pearl Harbor: The United States and World Crisis 1

The Arsenal of Democracy: The War in Europe 3

“Not Enough Ships": The Effort to Restrain Japan 8

Chapter Two. Allied Defeats and the Axis Ascendancy, 1941-1942 20

The Nazi Empire at Its Peak 20

Japan’s Imperial Conquests 24

Defeat and Surrender in the Philippines 25

Popular Perceptions and Expectations 34

Chapter Three. The War in Europe: The Turn of the Tide 38

The Debate over Strategy 38

The North African Invasion 41

The Eastern Front: The Russian Victory at Stalingrad 45

The Battle of the Atlantic 49

The Air War: The Bombing of Germany 51

The Cross-Channel Invasion: D-Day 53

Chapter Four. The Pacific Theater: The War against Japan, 1942-1945 59

“Our War”: Characteristics and Popular Perceptions 61

Midway: The End of Japan’s Naval Invincibility 65

Guadalcanal: The First Offensive 69

The Island Campaign, 1943-1944 72

Iwo Jima and Okinawa 79

Japan 1945: The Refusal to Surrender 84

Chapter Five. The Diplomatic Front: Roosevelt and the American Vision of the Postwar World 87